US secretary of state, Kuwait foreign minister discuss regional security amid ‘reprehensible’ Iranian attacks

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio held closed-door talks Thursday with Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah to discuss the strategic partnership between the two nations following recent military escalations, according to the State Department.

“The Secretary reiterated the commitment of the United States to Kuwait’s security, to ensuring that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon, and restoration of freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz,” said spokesperson Tommy Pigott.

Rubio condemned the “outrageous and unacceptable” Iranian strikes that recently hit the Kuwait International Airport and other parts of the country, expressing condolences for the casualties.

The meeting follows an announcement Wednesday by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that it targeted a US base in Kuwait and the US Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain. The attacks, reportedly in retaliation for a US strike on an Iranian communications tower, prompted Kuwait to declare two Iranian diplomats “persona non grata.”

The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry said the top diplomats reviewed “close historical ties” and affirmed a commitment to strengthening coordination in the political, defense and investment sectors.

“The meeting also included a condemnation of the repeated and reprehensible Iranian attacks against,” it said, adding both stressed the country’s “full right” to implement all necessary measures to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

“The United States and Kuwait are united in our vision of regional stability and an open and free Strait of Hormuz,” Rubio noted on a US social media company X.